DNC Cred (Updated)
Just got home from work and found a letter from the DNC saying that I (as part of Command Post, I presume) have received credentials for the convention.
Interesting. I thought that they were all handed out already. And taken away.
I'm tempted to turn down their offer or turn my creds over to Bill.
Update: Eh, they're perimeter credentials, not for the hall itself. No media work space, and no access within the Fleet Center, which I presume means no access to the filing centers set up for people with hall access. Also, they say that anyone using the creds must have completed a security and mailed it back. I know of no such form.
A CNN article states:
bq. Bloggers will have the same access as traditional journalists within the FleetCenter convention hall, Wilhide said. And bloggers will join radio journalists with workspace in the FleetCenter itself, while other media will be in nearby buildings, she said
My letter states:
Perimeter credentials allow access to the site, but NOT access within the FleetCenter.
Honestly, I have no idea what that means. Do we get to stand outside and interview stragglers?
Another update. Someone sent me a link to Aaron Bailey, who has been posting about this. I'm unable to bring his blog up for some reason, the html comes up instead, so I saved it and loaded it up onto ASV. Pertinent part (aside from their being no WiFi access, which won't even mean anything to me if I'm not in the hall):
bq. The letter states: "Perimeter credentials allow access to the site, but NOT access within the Fleet Center."
This means that you'll be able to take a bus to the Fleet Center, get off the bus, go through security, but you will not be able to enter the building, access media workspace (space purchased by media companies housed in a temporary structure in the parking lot), enter the arena and sit in the press gallery, or access the floor with delegates. In other words, you might as well stay home and watch C-Span. Indeed. Did anyone else get perimeter access? Does anyone know if the other bloggers credentialed got hall access? Ok, Aaron's site is just not loading in Firefox, it works in IE. He's got a bunch of posts about the convention.
This means that you'll be able to take a bus to the Fleet Center, get off the bus, go through security, but you will not be able to enter the building, access media workspace (space purchased by media companies housed in a temporary structure in the parking lot), enter the arena and sit in the press gallery, or access the floor with delegates. In other words, you might as well stay home and watch C-Span. Indeed. Did anyone else get perimeter access? Does anyone know if the other bloggers credentialed got hall access? Ok, Aaron's site is just not loading in Firefox, it works in IE. He's got a bunch of posts about the convention.
Comments
Was just reading about that on CNN
www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/07/12/bloggers.convention.ap/index.html
Posted by: Headzero | July 12, 2004 04:34 PM
DOes it allow you to carry in materials inspired by ProtestWarrior?
Posted by: Laurence Simon | July 12, 2004 05:12 PM
I guess I don't understand the value of 'perimeter access' credentials - why even bother giving them out?
Posted by: Ian S. | July 12, 2004 05:32 PM
Its so, if any violence occurs, there's selected fodder in the way.
/way too cynical & unfunny me.
Posted by: urthshu | July 12, 2004 06:48 PM
The hall is boring. The people on the floor at the night will mostly be NEA / AFSCME types. The people in the media workspace area will be media types, working. Boring. Trust me. The real fun of any convention is outside these places. You'll find more interesting stuff at the barricades, the protests, the off-site events (I covered the Miss Nude Republican Convention Pageant in a Dream Girls strip club in '96, and a unbelievably smelly anti-Bush rally in 92 in Washington Square) and the bars.
Ahhh, the bars.
Posted by: Lileks | July 12, 2004 06:58 PM
I think you'd be better off at home, watching C-Span, and making snarky comments galore. At least your Guiness won't be checked for explosive devices, your laptop won't be treated as if it can detonate Edward's plastique teeth, and you won't get kicked out for some trumped up credentials related issue:
Security guard (resembling pimply pubescent youth from the Simpsons): Excuse me? I'm sorry but your tag says you can't be here. See my lanyard? It has the blue pass. You have the aquamarine, so you have to go to the basement media center.
Posted by: jon | July 12, 2004 08:57 PM
Aaron's home page has no tags
Posted by: Sal M | July 12, 2004 09:09 PM
oh, jebus... that should be < body > tags.
Posted by: Sal M | July 12, 2004 09:10 PM
Make sure you bring extra cab fare.
Posted by: Sandy P | July 12, 2004 09:22 PM
Sorry folks for the problems... my re-launch is still rough around the edges but it looks like the DNC is trying to right their mistakes by letting bloggers into the hall.
In any case, if you go, let me know. Let's get a blogger night out.
Posted by: Aaron Bailey | July 12, 2004 10:45 PM
Seriously, they're just making this shit up now... They disinvited 20 bloggers due to space issues and now they are inviting more?
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy for you and CP (which always deserved the invite), but the DNCC has completely lost any semblance of believability in the matter. Maybe they're trying to show it's not all lefty bloggers, who knows - and they're not giving straight answers.
Assuming they screwed up and will be giving you floor access - go and have fun.
Posted by: Kevin | July 13, 2004 12:34 AM
yeah, but it's in BOSTON! you can go see a REAL team play baseball.... and I'll even come up and visit you.
Posted by: Jim S | July 13, 2004 01:05 PM
Aaron's page headers say "text/plain" instead of "text/html". So compliant browsers render it as plain text and broken ones ignore the header and render the html.
Posted by: Michael | July 14, 2004 09:22 AM
Nothing happens at the conventions. And stuff isn't going to start happening just because a few bloggers are there.
Posted by: Roxanne | July 14, 2004 09:33 AM
Aaron's pages have no '.htm' extension, so the server sends them as 'text/plain'. Non-compliant, insecure browsers (only one that I know of) render the page as html. Compliant browsers read the content header and render accordingly.
Posted by: Michael | July 16, 2004 11:02 PM